‘I feel her inside of me all the time’: Lady Gaga on playing the murderer at the heart of the House of Gucci
Lady Gaga has told Sky News that her latest film role took a toll on her – but it’s a toll she welcomed.
“That’s part of my artistry, is leaning into the suffering of a character,” she said at the premiere of House of Gucci, which tells the true story of the family behind the fashion house.
And while all families have their differences not many end in murder.
In the film the singer plays Patrizia Reggiani who was convicted in 1998 for hiring someone to kill her former husband Maurizio Gucci.
“To say that it would be easy to play a murderer would be a lie,” Gaga said. “I don’t believe she had the murder gene, but I do believe that she was triggered and pushed so far over the edge that she committed this murder.”
Patrizia Reggiani, ex-wife of slain fashion mogul Maurizio Gucci, leaving court during her murder trial in 1998
Gaga, who stayed in character for 18 months while making the film, says after inhabiting the character for so long it will take time to extract herself again.
“I would say that in terms of letting the character go, I don’t know that I’d ever let her go,” she explained.
“Today I chose this ring and it looks just like her engagement ring – I feel her inside of me all the time and I think it will take years.
“It took me years to shed Ali from A Star Is Born and I think the same will be true here.”
Benedetto Ceraulo (L) and Orazio Cicala were hired by Patrizia Reggiani to kill her ex husband
With this Gucci role only her second lead after that Oscar-nominated performance in A Star Is Born – Gaga is coy about whether she will dominate Hollywood like she has the music industry.
“I don’t know, you have to ask the audience,” she laughed.
The singer leads an all-star cast in the movie which also includes Adam Driver, Salma Hayek and an almost unrecognisable Jared Leto, wearing heavy prosthetics for the role of Paolo Gucci.
Lady Gaga, from right, Adam Driver, Jared Leto and Salma Hayek at the House of Gucci premiere Pic: AP
As another actor known for staying in character, and who also has a successful music career, Leto said he can see parallels between himself and the Chromatica star.
“I think Lady Gaga and I are both artists, rule breakers in our own ways, and what I love about is her bravery,” he told Sky News.
“She’s absolutely fearless and it was fun to do this with her, I really appreciated the opportunity and the freedom and her commitment.
“I expect a lot out of myself and when other people make great commitment, it’s really an absolute dream.”
The film has been a long time coming for Leto, who’s wanted to work with director Ridley Scott for almost two decades.
“I remember I met Ridley Scott in 2003, and I went up to him at a film festival and basically begged to work with him, and about 18 years later, he said ‘yes’.
“He’s one of my favourites – I mean, Alien, Gladiator, Blade Runner, The Martian – he’s just one of a kind, a real maverick, a real master, and I feel really fortunate to have had the opportunity to work with him.
“Genuinely, I mean it, it touched me and it was a very, very special project for me, it doesn’t happen like this every time, so I feel really fortunate to be here and to be part of the journey.”
Maurizio Gucci was gunned down on the steps outside his office as he arrived at work in March 1995 Pic: AP
For Adam Driver, who plays Maurizio Gucci, the film marks his second time working with Scott – following period drama The Last Duel which came out in cinemas last month.
He says the film-maker brings out a different side of him.
“His process is so opposite to mine in a way – he works fast, likes minimal takes, and sometimes I like to do a lot and overthink it to make it over precious,” Driver told Sky News.
“He’s very much about first impulses and I love it, and he’s the most unpretentious, hilarious person to work with – I love being on set with him.”
The movie sees the twists and turns of his character’s relationship with Gaga’s Reggiani.
Driver says they were both given the time to really dig into the roles.
“We had the luxury of two weeks before we started [filming] of rehearsal.
“Changing the script a lot and really finding the arcs of both characters, and so it was great.
“Ridley sets a tone that is very collaborative so it’s a dream job.”
House of Gucci is out in cinemas in the UK on November 26th.
Entertainment
‘I’m shocked at how fragile I am still’: Cumberbatch and Colman on protecting their sanity from perils of social media
Actor Benedict Cumberbatch says he’s shocked at how “fragile” he still is – despite years in the spotlight and success in the industry.
It might seem like the Doctor Strange star and The Crown actress Olivia Colman have it all when it comes to money and success – but they are also human like the rest of us.
The pair lead the cast of new satirical black comedy The Roses, which sees picture-perfect couple Ivy and Theo Rose – a rising star chef and ambitious architect – raise their two children in California, while chasing their own dreams.
‘I am shocked at how fragile I am’
But behind its dark humour and comic language, the film also looks at the realities of power imbalance, insecurity and wounded pride – in even the strongest of relationships.
And 49-year-old Cumberbatch – whose character faces a major setback in his career – tells Sky News that in real life the glare of social media only intensifies those type of situations.
“I am shocked at how fragile I am still.
“I don’t go anywhere near it [social media] because of that.
“It’s like walking into a place where people want to marry you or kill you. Those extremes.
“I think we will get to a stage, a corporate culture that’s now manifested around it where people are obliged to do that in order to sell their lives, and therefore their brand and what they do for a living.”
Co-star Colman – who’s long-shunned the online world – agrees.
Cumberbatch and Colman in The Roses. Pic: Jaap Buitendijk/ Searchlight Pictures
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“I’m afraid I am very thin-skinned.
“I don’t look at any of it. My husband will look at a review and if it’s nice he’ll show me – but if it’s anything mean he knows to just go ‘don’t look – don’t look.’
“You just have to learn to be thicker-skinned.
“But actually, I think we need people who are sensitive and kind.”
‘Don’t do it… delete it all’
Colman – now 51, and whose leading role in The Favourite bagged her an Academy Award in 2019 – says no amount of experience and success can shield her from criticism.
“My advice to a young’un – sort of dipping their toe into the world of social media for the first time is absolutely don’t do it.
“Delete it all. If you want a happy life, don’t have any of it. I’ve never had it.”
The movie – directed by Meet The Parents’ Jay Roach with The Favourite screenwriter Tony McNamara – also calls into question the notion of success – asking, is it really possible to have it all?
Or is sacrifice inevitable when it comes to spinning the plates of a high-flying career, marriage and parenthood?
Cumberbatch admits “you can’t do it all without there being a cost”.
“You just have to weigh up what those balances are,” he adds.
Colman says “there are I suppose little sacrifices along the way” – from both sides of a relationship.
The comedy drama offers a fresh take on Warren Adler’s novel The War Of The Roses – and the 1989 hit film adaptation- starring Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner.
Colman and Cumberbatch – both producers on the film – insist they weren’t daunted by that though.
“We wanted to find a project to do together, and we have utter respect for the iconic status of the film and book,” explains Cumberbatch.
“Hopefully this will have its own place in the culture – it’s very different, it’s not a remake – it’s a reimagined jumping-on point.”
“But beyond that, it’s very different,” adds Colman.
Former Doctor Who Ncuti Gatwa and Barbie’s Kate McKinnon also form the cast.
The Roses is out in UK cinemas now.
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